Hachiman's Honor
Hachiman's Honor is an episode from the original series of ThunderCats. Written by J. Larry Carroll, it originally aired on September 29, 1987. Official Summary Luna tricks Hachiman into helping her by claiming that her tiny size and physical weakness prevent her from returning home during a Third Earth storm. Hachiman obliges and carries her to the Ice Cave. There, Aluro and Chilla attack him. Trapped in the Valley of Chains, Hachiman loses his sword, the Thunder-Cutter, and his honor to the Luna-Taks. The Luna-Taks build an Automaton and program the machine to carry Hachiman's sword. The Automaton attacks Lion-O and the other Thundercats. The real Hachiman defeats the Automaton by retrieving the Thunder-Cutter, which, like the Sword of Omens, cannot be used for evil purposes. Official Moral Honor means allegiance to what is right and the respect shown to those who manifest excellence of character. Hachiman, who shares with the Thundercats a strict code of honor and is deserving of this esteem, feels in this episode that his respect is lost when the Luna-Taks steal his sword, the Thunder-Cutter. He sat out with great determination to his yang both his sword and his lost honor. He finds, however, that the Luna-Taks have created an automaton and have armed it with his sword. The sword cannot distinguish good and evil, because it is used by machine that has no conscience. But when Hachiman, with his acute sense of morality, is able to touch the sword Sandy police, and it responds to him and the automaton is destroyed. The figure of Hachiman reminds us of the value of the concept of honor, allegiance to what is right. Our ability to follow a code of honor depends on our developing a strong conscience, the faculty to discern right from wrong, and applying it in our own everyday lives. At times, we are confronted choices regarding honor, doing what we know to be right. The choice may involve a sacrifice, like reporting some wrongdoing or giving back a prize because we find we unwittingly violated a rule or was not eligible for the award. We can choose to avoid the necessary action or we can follow our conscience and do the honorable thing. Only then can we feel self-respect and deserving of esteem that is due those who act honorably. Hachiman's sword is also a reminder in this episode, signifying that the meanings we choose to achieve an end. Only when Hachiman directed it was its force used rightly on behalf of just and honorable means. We must take care not only to develop a strong conscience, but also safeguard that the courses of actions we take in our lives are consonant with just and noble ends. Summary The Lunataks steal the Thunder-Cutter from Hachiman and then arm their Automaton with the legendary sword. Story While making his way through a fierce storm to the Tower of Omens, Hachiman hears someone’s cries for help. That someone turns out to be Luna, who Hachiman does not know is the leader of the evil Lunataks. Pretending to be a damsel in distress, Luna lures Hachiman into a nearby cave where Alluro first hypnotizes him and Chilla then freezes him solid. The Lunataks take away his sword, the Thunder-Cutter, and give it to their latest creation, the Automaton, a robotic samurai. Worried that Hachiman might have gotten caught in the storm, Lion-O, WilyKit, WilyKat and Snarfer head out to look for him. They find him and, after thawing him out, head after the Lunataks. While making their way towards DarkSide, the group passes through the Valley of Chains and immediately gets tied up by the sentient chains. Luna then sends her Automaton to attack them. Armed with the Thunder-Cutter, the robot proves to be too tough an opponent, even for Lion-O and the Sword of Omens. Eventually, Hachiman joins in the fight and as soon as he touches the blade o the Thunder-Cutter, the sword recognizes its true master and destroys the Automaton. Hachiman and the ThunderCats then lead the Lunataks into the same cave and bury them under an avalanche of snow and ice before heading home. Inside the Tower of Omens, Snarfer tries unsuccessfully to create his own Automaton. Characters Vehicles Locations Trivia Goofs *Hachiman is shown still living on Third Earth, despite the fact in "ThunderCats Ho! - Part V" Jaga claimed that Hachiman was banished back to his own time period by Mumm-Ra. Notable Quotes Media This episode was released on the following media: DVD * Season 2 Volume 1 DVD * Season 2 DVD * Seasons 1 & 2 DVD Episode Screenshots External Links *ThunderCats 1985 cartoon series on Wikipedia *ThunderCats on ThunderCats.org Category:Thundercats: 1980s TV episodes Category:ThunderCats episodes written by J. Larry Carroll Category:Season 2 (ThunderCats 1980s)